Hixme, which operates a private health insurance exchange platform, will use $14.1 million in new funding to expand beyond its base market of California and create new bundles of employee benefits.

Expansion plans call for Hixme to begin marketing its services in Dallas, Houston and Atlanta by the end of the year, says CEO Denny Weinberg. Currently, California-based companies with employees working out-of-state use Hixmes WorkPlace Market platform to manage their health plans.

In January Hixme will move 7,000 employees of California-based companies, and their family members, in 21 states to its platform. An equal number of existing clients will migrate to Hixmes platform after that date, Weinberg says.

Hixme targets companies with 500 to 5,000 employees, of which there are more than 16,000 representing about 44 million consumers (workers and their family members) in 13 cities, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

Hixmes platform allows employees of large companies to purchase health plans direct from insurance carriers using dollars allocated by their employer for health benefits, as opposed to being enrolled in a group health plan of their employers choice. More than 150 carriers offering nearly 3,000 health plans are available through Hixmes platform.

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Employees accessing Hixmes web portal are shown health plans based on such criteria as their previous group plan, location and options wanted.

Hixme also offers supplemental medical plans, such as gap insurance, to help reduce an employees out-of-pocket expenses, the company says. Hixme receives a commission for each policy sold through its platform from the insurance carrier. The commissions are the same as those paid by carriers to insurance brokers but no other specifics are available, the company says.

Employees can tailor their health benefits based on their needs and preferences. An employee that wants to maintain her relationship with her primary care physician, for example, can opt for a preferred provider organization, or PPO, plan with a higher deductible that allows her to use her physician of choice over a health maintenance organization (HMO) plan with a lower deductible that does not include her doctor in its network.

Companies pay the monthly premium for all employees through the Hixme platform. An employees share for her plans premium is deducted from her salary by her employer. Health plan contracts run month-to-month with a 30-day grace period for payment before the policy is cancelled.

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Hixmes expansion plans include bundling other benefits, such as retirement savings plans, with health plans over the next 12 months. A worker that feels she will spend less than the amount of the total health benefit allocated by her employer, for example, can shift a portion of those dollars to her 401k account, Hixme says.

Health benefit dollars can also be shifted to lifestyle programs to pay for home or auto insurance or help with commuting costs, Weinberg says.

Employers tend to purchase more health benefits than most of their employees will use, says Weinberg. Offering employees the opportunity to reallocate a portion of their health benefits to other benefits programs allows workers to right-size their healthcare coverage without lessening the overall value of that benefit.

Transamerica Corp., which provides supplemental insurance plans on Hixmes platform, will also offer retirement and lifestyle benefits, Weinberg says.

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Other services Hixme plans to bundle into health plans include a digital lending platform that allows employees incurring high out-of-pocket medical expenses to have a portion of the amount deducted from each paycheck until the bill is paid and the ability to negotiate discounts for out-of-pocket expenses with healthcare providers in exchange for immediate payment.

Hixme charges an administrative fee of $5 per consumer, per month, on average, for bundled services.

Long-term, Hixme plans to target employee benefits consultants and brokers to market its platform, Weinberg says. The company currently markets directly to large companies.

Hixme has raised $26.6 million since its founding in 2013. The company is based in Agora Hills, Calif.

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